Fast Facts - Coates Hire Ipswich SuperSprint

Virgin Australia Supercars Championship

|

21/07/2017

By Aaron Noonan, V8 Sleuth

1. TeamVortex’s Craig Lowndes remains the most successful driver in the history of Supercars racing at Queensland Raceway with 12 race wins. However his record is even more impressive when you consider he’s finished on the podium in 15 of the last 19 races at the Ipswich circuit.

One area he needs improvement though in is qualifying; 60 ARMOR ALL Pole Positions have been awarded in the championship since Lowndes scored his last, which was at Queensland Raceway two years ago. He currently is the 15th-best qualifier in the 2017 championship.

2. Shell V-Power Racing Team’s Scott McLaughlin is on an amazing streak of 12 straight front row-qualifying performances. It’s a championship record in the modern Supercar era and puts the young Kiwi fourth on the list of most consecutive front row qualifying efforts behind Peter Brock (22 in a row), Allan Moffat (16) and Dick Johnson (15).

3. Only two drivers in the 2017 field - Garth Tander and Craig Lowndes - have competed in every Supercars Championship round held at Queensland Raceway since the first back in 1999. This year’s Coates Hire Ipswich SuperSprint is the 21st time the championship has raced at the circuit given there were two rounds held there in both 1999 and 2000.

4. Four wildcard drivers will compete in the Coates Hire Ipswich SuperSprint, including current Dunlop Super2 Series points leader Todd Hazelwood who will make his Virgin Australia Supercars Championship debut this weekend. That means the field of 30 cars is the biggest for a sprint round in the championship since Hidden Valley 2009.

5. Mobil 1 HSV Racing’s Scott Pye will start his 150th Virgin Australia Supercars Championship race on the Sunday at Queensland Raceway. Pye will be competing in his 64th championship round having debuted as an endurance driver with Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport at Sandown in 2012.

6. Red Bull Holden Racing Team’s Jamie Whincup continues to move up the lists in the records book of championship history. With 105 race wins he’s now tied with Craig Lowndes for the wins record and Queensland Raceway marks his 192nd championship round, bringing him level with Tony Longhurst for 15th on the all-time round starts list.

7. The closest pole-winning margin at Queensland Raceway in Supercars racing remains 0.0061s between Jamie Whincup and Mark Winterbottom for the Saturday race in 2009.

8. The Coates Hire Ipswich SuperSprint is a busy one for birthdays in the Supercars paddock. Shell V-Power Racing star Fabian Coulthard turns 35 on the Friday of the event, Hall of Famer team owner Garry Rogers turns 72 on the Saturday and Supercars TV commentator Neil Crompton turns 57 on the Sunday.

9. James Courtney holds the record for the closest winning margin for a Supercars race at Queensland Raceway. He beat Mark Winterbottom by just 0.2423-seconds in 2008 to claim his maiden Supercars Championship victory in Race 1 of that weekend’s round.

10. The Vodafone Safety Car has only appeared in 11 of the last 42 Supercars Championship races at Queensland Raceway. In fact it has only appeared in six of the last 21 races held there between 2009 and 2016.